The museum's C-141A was the first one manufactured
The C-141A was the first jet-engine military transport and was introduced to replace the slower propeller-driven C-124 and C-133. It incorporated long-range, high-speed, and increased load-carrying capabilities.
This is the first C-141 built. Its maiden flight was on December 1963, 60 years to the day since the Wright brothers' first flight. It is one of only four that was not converted to a B-model.
Although originally assigned to the Military Air Transport Service (MATS), it spent its entire career as a test aircraft. Used in testing and development so that subsequent airframes could be assigned to operational squadrons, it later performed many types of testing that required a large multi-engine aircraft.
Its last program was to tow an F-106 fighter to high altitude to test the feasibility of launching a new generation of space shuttle from in flight.
Specifications
Manufacturer: Lockheed
Type: Strategic cargo transport
Powerplant: Four 21,000-lb-thrust Pratt & Whitney TF33-P-7 turbofan engines
Maximum Speed: 565 mph
Range: 3,600 mi. with max payloads
Service ceiling: 42,250 ft
Max Takeoff Weight:
323,100 lb
Crew: Pilot, co-pilot, two flight engineers, navigator, and loadmaster, crew of five on MEDEVAC missions
Dimensions:
Wing Span - 160 ft 9 in
Length - 145 ft 0 in
Height - 39 ft 3 in
[Captions, clockwise from top right:]
Above: 2775 takes off towing a QF-106 up to 10,000 ft at the end of a 1,000-ft-long tow rope. This was its last testing program before retirement.
The large rear ramp doors can be opened fully in flight for aerial load dropping while a built-in loading ramp can be extended and lowered for vehicle access on the ground.
A conventional two-spar, box-beam, cantilever, high wing is mounted on top of the fuselage with 25-degree sweepback.
Four-wheel bogle main undercarriage landing gear retract forward into fairings. To assist with short-field landings there are hydraulic, multiple-disc, anti-skid brakes.
The cockpit with its crew of two pilots, flight engineer, and navigator has modern instrumentation for all-weather, around-the-world operations.
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